The opening of Burnt-Up Love at the Finborough Theatre delves into the visceral, sometimes morally ambiguous dimensions of parental love. In this intense, 70-minute three-hander, the play reveals how a parent’s love can inspire immense sacrifice while also crossing lines and leading to morally challenging decisions. This emotional intensity and willingness to confront uncomfortable truths make Burnt-Up Love a stirring, thought-provoking exploration of love’s darker, unrestrained depths.
The story revolves around Mac (Ché Walker), who has just been released from prison after 20 years, as he searches for Scratch (Joanne Marie Mason), the daughter he had to leave behind when she was only three. Mac has been imprisoned for violent crimes – usually a calm and collected man, in his first monologue he talks about turning into a killing machine in moments of sheer anger. The photo of the 3-year-old Scratch has kept Mac going in his long years incarcerated, and he wants to replace his fantasies of how she turned out with reality. The reality is that Scratch has grown into a wild and dangerous but beautiful and free-spirited woman – living rough, selling her body for money and drugs, and leaving a trail of chaos in her wake. She leaves one toxic relationship with (the unseen) Ramon and his family only to find and then reject a more nurturing connection with the loving but damaged JayJayJay (Alice Walker).
Set design is sparse, with only four irregularly shaped plinths crowned by candelabras, lending an intensely intimate atmosphere, as if eavesdropping on deeply private moments. Through a mix of monologues and dialogues – between Scratch and JayJayJay, JayJayJay and Mac, and, in a climactic exchange, Mac and Scratch in a dance bar—the language remains beautiful, reaching its most vibrant heights in the dialogues, particularly those between Scratch and JayJayJay.
Each actor delivers a strong, nuanced performance. Ché Walker captures Mac’s character with his physicality and piercing gaze, portraying violent recollections with unsettling calm. Mason injects Scratch with frenetic energy, though her rapid pace occasionally muffles her words. Alice Walker’s expressive, almost dance-like movements convey JayJayJay’s emotional depth, and she skillfully delivers some of the play’s most memorable lines.
The program includes a thought-provoking essay on the challenges of reintegrating ex-offenders into society, adding context to the play. Yet, at its core, Burnt-Up Love is about reunion, connection, and a father’s unexpected, powerful expression of love for his daughter. Highly recommended.
Burnt-Up Love (Instagram @burntuploveplay)
Written and directed by Ché Walker
Original music composed by Uchenna Ngwe and additional music by Sheila Atim
Set designed by Juliette Demoulin
Cast: Joanne Marie Mason, Alice Walker, Ché Walker
Until 23rd November 2024
Running time: 70 minutes without interval